Democracy by accident: the rise of Zuma and the renaissance of the tripartite alliance

Abstract:

In party organisational terms, the rise of Jacob Zuma to the Presidency of the African National
Congress (ANC) is a victory for the alliance partners and the struggle-era vision of the ANC as a
popular front, or the ‘ANC as alliance’, as against Mbeki’s centralised and exclusionary practice.
Accidentally, this renaissance of the ANC as alliance is good for democracy in South Africa understood
in both liberal and participatory terms. On the one hand, the factionalism in the party
provided for an alternation of leadership not possible through formal elections; and perhaps not
desirable at this time. Further, the emergence of Congress of the People (COPE) promises a more
meaningful party pluralism, taking the pressure for democratic competition off ANC internal
processes into the future. On the other hand, the renaissance of the ANC as alliance provides better
access to government by organisations, especially COSATU, who have a proven record in mobilising
working and poor people around key social issues from land to HIV-AIDS and Zimbabwe. In this
way the chances of greater inclusion in national decision-making are heightened, at least for some
marginalised groups.

Citation:

Piper, L. & Matisonn, H. (2009). Democracy by accident: the rise of Zuma and the renaissance of the tripartite alliance. Representation, 45(2): 143-157